Birmingham bus driver who caused horror smash in fog jailed for six years

The coach and lorry involved in the M5 crash, which happened in heavy fog

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A Birmingham bus driver who caused a fog-bound motorway smash that killed two people and injured many others has been jailed for six years.

Jasminder Dhesi ‘stranded’ his vehicle on the slow lane of the M5 after it broke down three times in pea-soup conditions. There were 30 passengers inside.

A lorry ploughed into the bus, killing passenger Liaquat Ali, aged 35 and from Smethwick, and the HGV driver, 65-yearold William Mapstone.

Dhesi failed a breath-test at the scene, but was found to be below the drink-drive limit when a second sample was taken at the police station.

The father-of-two, of Nether Hall Avenue, Great Barr, had previously admitted two charges of causing death by dangerous driving. As well as the jail sentence, the 50-year-old was banned from driving for four years at Birmingham Crown Court yesterday.

Judge Michael Chambers QC told him: “Those 30 people on the bus were vulnerable. What happened, in my judgement, was entirely foreseeable and avoidable.”

The horrific March 24 accident happened while Dhesi, who had a previous drink-drive conviction, was ferrying a team of fruit-pickers from Quinton to Evesham.

In thick fog, he drove the single-deck Volvo onto the M5 at junction 3. Dhesi was forced to twice pull the vehicle onto the hard-shoulder to re-start its spluttering engine.

Jasminder Dhesi

“It is at this point that the defendant makes the fateful decision to continue with the journey,” said Mr Neil Bannister, prosecuting.

Dhesi stalled for a third time - under a footbridge where there is no hard shoulder, forcing a number of cars to take evasive action. Mr Mapstone, however, hit the rear of the bus.

Mr Bannister added that 11 months on from the accident one of the victims is still in hospital with serious head injuries.

Raglan Ashton, defending, said Dhesi had actively taken steps to try and ensure that the bus was roadworthy and he was only aware of the defect for a short period of time.

After the case, Liaquat Ali’s wife and brother, Fozia Shaheen and Ashfaq Ahmed, said in a statement: “Liaquat was a wonderful husband, father and brother who doted over his three young children.

“Whilst we are relieved that justice has been served today, we will never be able to overcome our loss. For Fozia, in particular, her world ended on the morning of March 24, 2012.

Mr Mapstone’s son-in-law, Kai Markall said: “The family can only hope that from this tragedy others will learn that your actions and choices in life can seriously affect others. If in trouble, call for help. Better to be late than to never arrive.